Campaigners are hitting back at zoo proposals to cull adult male gorillas, arguing that they should be returned to the wild instead.
Overcrowding of critically endangered western lowland gorillas in zoos has led the influential European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA), which regulates most zoos in Europe, to consider killing adult males of the species.
Western lowland gorillas are the smallest of the four gorilla subspecies, standing at 122cm to 183cm when upright. Tests on one lowland gorilla found an IQ of 70 to 90 — the average IQ for humans on many tests is 100, and most people score somewhere between 85 and 115.
Photo: EPA-EFE
In the wild, they are critically endangered. The exact number of western lowland gorillas is not known because they inhabit some of the most dense and remote rainforests in Africa.
Because of poaching and disease, the gorilla’s numbers have declined by more than 60 percent over the past 20 to 25 years.
Leaked documents seen by the Guardian reveal that culling, castration and keeping adult single males in solitary confinement for a large portion of their lives are seen as potential solutions to an overpopulation of the species in zoos.
The gorilla population in EAZA-regulated zoos consists of 463 individuals — 212 males, 250 females and one of unknown sex — at 69 institutions.
The association’s gorilla action plan, released to stakeholders in zoos, admits that culling would be “the most appropriate tool if strictly talking from the biological point of view,” but that the decision could be unpopular with the public.
The document reads: “The main downside of this option is that it is controversial in many countries and in some illegal, in specific circumstances. Any discussion on culling can quickly become an emotional one because it is easy to empathize with gorillas. This carries a high risk that an emotional response by the public and/or zoo staff and keepers, catalyzed by social media, inflicts damage to zoos and aquariums.”
Once male gorillas reach a certain age, zoos do not keep them in all-male groups, because of the risk of violence.
Zoos are also loth to keep them in mixed groups, as there would be nowhere to house any resultant offspring.
Other animals that are given non-breeding recommendations in European zoos because of overpopulation include white tigers, pumas and ocelots.
Conservationist and rewilder Damian Aspinall, who runs wildlife parks in Kent, England, is working with political campaigner Carrie Johnson to draw attention to the plight of animals in zoos. He believes that gorillas should be returned to the wild rather than culled.
“It’s a sad day for the zoological community when they are considering culling gorillas when there is a great opportunity to rewild gorillas like the Aspinall Foundation has done for 30 years, having rewilded over 70 gorillas,” he said.
Nevertheless, some scientists argue that it is too difficult to return gorillas to the wild in most cases, as there is not enough habitat to safely release them and avoid conflict with others of the species — and humans — and that they can carry diseases that might wipe out wild populations.
Ben Garrod, a primatologist and professor of evolutionary biology and science engagement at the University of East Anglia, said: “The last thing anyone serious about conservation and welfare wants is to discuss culls, but they can serve a function in some situations. Introducing any large mammal to the wild comes with so many considerations and difficulties, and great apes are an especially risky group.”
“Great apes, such as gorillas, are able to pick up many of the diseases our own species carries, and if they were introduced into wild gorilla populations, the effects would be devastating,” he said. “Similarly, animals being introduced into the wild need a habitat away from humans, and away from other gorillas ideally, partly to reduce conflict and partly to reduce any possible infection or disease spread.”
“Realistically, there isn’t an abundance of such pristine suitable habitat out there — that’s part of the original problem,” he said. “I’d ask why any zoo is able to breed so many gorillas that a cull is even considered necessary. Do we cull the babies or old animals or excess males? These are social, sentient and cultured animals. We do not have the right to treat them as surplus stock in this way. To breed animals like this without a sustainable and ethical outcome is reckless to say the least, and needs to be addressed.”
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